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Tom the banana seller Tom machann fig lan Tom le vendeur de bananes

Written by Humphreys Odunga

Illustrated by Zablon Alex Nguku

Read by Darshan Soni

Language English

Level Level 2

Narrate full story

Reading speed

Autoplay story


Tom carries a tray of ripe bananas.

Tom ap mache ak yon panyen fig sou tèt li.

Tom transporte un plateau de bananes mûres.


Tom goes to the market to sell bananas.

Tom pral vann fig li yo nan mache a.

Tom va au marché pour vendre des bananes.


People at the market are buying fruit.

Moun yo ki nan mache a abitye achte fwi.

Les gens au marché achètent des fruits.


But no one is buying Tom’s bananas. They prefer to buy fruit from women.

Men okenn nan yo pap achte fwi nan men Tom. Yo pito achte fwi nan men medam yo.

Mais personne n’achète les bananes de Tom. Ils préfèrent acheter leurs fruits des femmes.


“In our community, only women sell fruit,” people say. “What kind of a man is this?” people ask.

Nan kominote nou se fi sèlman ki vann fwi. Moun yo kòmanse pale sou Tom “Ki kalite gason sa a ye?”

« Dans notre communauté, seulement les femmes vendent des fruits, » disent les gens. « Quelle sorte d’homme est celui-ci ? » demandent les gens.


But Tom does not give up. He calls, “Buy my bananas! Buy my sweet ripe bananas!”

Men Tom pa kite sa dekouraje’l. Lap rele « Achte fig mwen yo…Achte fig mwen yo. Fig mwen yo mi, fig yo dous.”

Mais Tom ne démissionne pas. Il crie, « Achetez mes bananes ! Achetez mes bananes mûres et sucrées ! »


One woman picks up a bunch of bananas from the tray. She looks at the bananas carefully.

Yon madanm deside achte yon rejim fig nan men Tom. Li enspekte chak fig apa.

Une femme choisit un régime de bananes du plateau. Elle inspecte les bananes soigneusement.


The woman buys the bananas.

Lòt medam yo achte kèk fig tou.

La femme achète les bananes.


More people come to the stall. They buy Tom’s bananas and eat them.

Lòt moun kòmanse rive. Yo achte fig Tom yo enpi yo manje yo.

D’autres personnes viennent au stand. Elles achètent les bananes de Tom et les mangent.


Soon, the tray is empty. Tom counts the money he earned.

Anvan lontan Tom pa te gen fig ankò. Li konte lajan li.

Bientôt, le plateau est vide. Tom compte l’argent qu’il a gagné.


Then Tom buys soap, sugar, and bread. He puts the things in his tray.

Ak lajan sa a Tom achte savon, sik ak pen. Li mete tout bagay sa yo nan panyen’l.

Ensuite, Tom achète du savon, du sucre et du pain. Il met les choses sur son plateau.


Tom balances the tray on his head and goes home.

Tom balanse panyen an sou tèt li epi li rantre lakay li.

Tom balance le plateau sur sa tête et rentre chez lui.


Written by: Humphreys Odunga
Illustrated by: Zablon Alex Nguku
Read by: Darshan Soni
Language: English
Level: Level 2
Source: Tom the banana seller from African Storybook
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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